Accessibility

There are more than nine million disabled people in the UK. At least two million people experience serious sight problems. Increasing numbers of disabled people use the internet for information, shopping, study, work and entertainment. However, disabled people find that many web sites are extremely difficult to use because of the way they have been designed.

We are committed to making its output as accessible as possible to all audiences (including those with visual, hearing, cognitive or motor impairments) to fulfill its meet the requirements specified under the Disability Discrimination Act. We continually test our web sites with a number of browsers, screen readers, accessibility and HTML validators, and other web tools. The results of such reviews are incorporated into improvements for our site.

We include the following features designed to improve accessibility for users with disabilities:

A sitemap is available on the site.

Images on the site contain "alt tags", which contain simple descriptions of the images to aid users who listen to the content of the site by using a screen reader.

Text links are formatted to be as self-evident as they can possibly be.

The site's style sheets are designed to allow users to resize the text of the site in browsers that support this feature (generally available under the View menu).

Links to external sites open in a new window. Note: We are not responsible for the content or accessibility of these referenced sites.

Layout is accomplished mainly with CSS, but the site is also designed to display well if CSS is not supported. Form controls are properly grouped and labelled.

If you have difficulty viewing any page using assistive technology, please use our online enquiry form so that we can make the information available to you. Please indicate the nature of your accessibility problem, the format in which you would like to receive the material, the web address of the requested material, and your contact information.

From time to time, we undertake new web site developments and experiments with new web-based processes. During their development and testing phases, it is possible that they may not comply with our accessibility standards. Please be reassured, we will make all efforts to ensure we bring these new developments into line at the earliest possible opportunity.